Silent Witness payouts explained as Mangione spotter has his FBI payment delayed

PHOENIX – The McDonald’s employee who recognized Luigi Mangione will not be getting a reward anytime soon. 

There are two separate rewards the employee should be eligible for. NYPD was offering a $10,000 reward and the FBI was offering a $50,000 reward. 

Both agencies have different policies when it comes to issuing money and there are a few steps the tipster needs to take. 

On Monday, a McDonald’s employee in Pennsylvania recognized the suspected gunman in the shooting death of Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, and called 911.

The employee should be eligible to receive up to $60,000 offered by the FBI and NYPD, but that money is staying put for now.

“It’s a little bit more tricky when it comes to other agencies that also want to supply money because it goes based off of their policy and how they determine whether or not the tip that came in was valid and if it did lead to an arrest,” said Phoenix Police Sgt. Brian Bower.

After calling 911, the tipster should call Crime Stoppers to qualify for the reward and provide a reference number tied to the case. 

For the FBI reward, the employee will have to wait for a conviction and – according to the FBI’s website – the employee will need to be nominated by a U.S. investigating agency.

“What’s unique about paying a witness is we don’t pay off based on the prosecution and waiting until the trial is finished. We pay off based on arrests,” Bower said.

Silent Witness in Maricopa County has a quicker process, allowing rewards to end up in the hands of tipsters a lot faster. 

 Bower says the first step is to call 480-Witness with your tip. That’s where you’ll receive a pin number.

“It’s all started with the detectives themselves, notifying a Silent Witness that, yes, this tip did lead to an arrest,” he said.

The Silent Witness board, which meets once a month, will then approve that reward and within a month or month and a half, payments go out.

“If you’re providing information, and you want to be part of the solution – we want to make sure that you’re rewarded properly,” Bower said.

Although different agencies have different policies, Sgt. Bower encourages tipsters to come forward. 

Silent Witness receives at least 1,000 tips per week. 

There are two ways to contact Silent Witness: you can call 480-Witness or you can submit a report online. 

Sgt. Bower says you can stay anonymous, in fact, it’s encouraged. 

You will not be asked to give your name or any other personal information when on the phone with a Silent Witness representative.